Colorado University Athletics
Tennessee-Martin-Colorado Quotes
November 21, 2010 | Women's Basketball
Colorado Head Coach Linda Lappe
General
"Well we did a good job picking up the win. Hitting our free throws down the stretch- we got to the free throw line tonight probably more than we've gotten to the free throw line yet. That was helpful. I thought our offense was clicking, especially at times. We were moving well; we were passing well and knocking down our open shots. So offensively we were clicking pretty well. Defensively, there are a lot of things we need to work on, but down the stretch when it counted I thought we did a pretty good job."
On maintaining lead
"We haven't showed that we can yet, but that's typical for this time of the year in not being able to play a full forty. We have to continue to look to get to that point though. We have to work to get to that point fairly quickly. I like our starts, and as long as you can start like that you're putting a lot of pressure on the other team to come back; they waste a lot of energy coming back. So I definitely don't want to change how we start the game and how we're finishing the game. We're doing some really good things; I thought we did some good things coming out of halftime. We've just got to continue to put together a full game."
On needed improvements
"Overall team defense: it's not one player versus number 20 (UT-M's Jaclissa Haislip), it's five players versus number 20. We have to continue to communicate better defensively. If we're communicating and we're on it mentally, we can be a really good defensive team. A lot of it comes down to the mentality of wanting to defend. Sometimes when you're scoring a lot of points it's hard to get that mentality. We've got to have it, and have it soon. Just helping each other out; sliding over and helping out isn't quite where it needs to be when teams drive. I thought our denial has been pretty good, especially in the first half. We come out and come in, and that's a lot of the reason that we come out to big leads: we play defense to start the game off. Just sustaining that; we have the principles, we have the concepts and we just need to have the mentality the entire game."
On three-point shooting
"We shot well at the beginning and we had a point there where we weren't hitting very many, but we were still shooting a lot of them. We thought we could really get inside, so we called a timeout and we told them to penetrate and they did. I thought our players did a great job of adjusting. We got a lot of easy baskets. I think we went on an 8-0 run; every one of those eight points was in the paint at the rim. Towards the end of the game I think you could see a little bit of balance, and what we have to have. We can't be shooting all threes, we can't be only drivers; we have to be able to go inside and also hit those outside shots as well."
On team rebounding
"Just the mentality, I thought that was one of the keys to the game. They were outrebounding opponents by 11, and they were outrebounding us throughout the game. But in the second half I thought we really bared down. I think they got 10 offensive rebounds and they average 18. Anytime you can hold an opponent to less than what they're used to getting, I think it's key. We really stepped up and were aggressive to the boards. A lot of times we had two people going and trying to take it from each other. I'm okay with that, we'll figure that out, but to have that aggressive mentality was key."
On defense
"They were running a little bit of a matchup zone slash switching man. We were running our man offense against what they were doing. Communication and aggression, you're right, we did a great job coming out of the game. [We] put a lot of pressure on them and forced them into a lot of turnovers. When we do that we can run on offense."
Colorado Players
Brittany Spears, Sr., F
ON WHAT TO WORK ON MOVING FORWARD- "We just need to stay consistent on defense and knowing where we're supposed to be at. It's just being consistent."
ON REACHING THE MILESTONE OF 1,600 CAREER POINTS- "It's a great accomplishment. I didn't even know."
Chucky Jeffery, So., G
ON WHAT TO WORK ON MOVING FORWARD- "I think that [being consistent] is our biggest thing. Our offense generates from our defense. Like coach [Lappe] said, we were playing hard at the beginning of the game and then I think once we get comfortable, we slack off; we can't do that. I think that's the main thing, sliding to help, and basic things that we can just touch up on and work better on to be a good defensive team."
Tennessee-Martin Head Coach Kevin McMillan
General
"We didn't play real well. I thought we came out of the game really slowly. We kind of had a deer-in-the-headlights look. I thought we battled a little bit but then we got the same look again. The excuse we can always use is that we start five freshmen and play 13 newcomers. There's a point when that cannot be an excuse anymore. I like the fact that they didn't give up, and that they kept going. If we are going to win a game like this, we missed too many little shots, too many open shots and free throws. Our margin of error against a team like Colorado is so small and we didn't take advantage of that. They made some open shots early and they did a good job on the glass. If we learn from it, it will be a good one, but if not then it's just another loss.
On the progression of the five starting freshmen
"We are better than we were in the first game. We get better every time out. We were better today than what we had been. It's like I tell them, good enough is still not good enough. We can be happy about getting a little bit better, but we've got to get over that hump. We are close to battle them to a 10 point ball game. That is a good place for us to be right now. The mistakes that we make ourselves are the things we have to correct. We had a tough enough time with them on the boards, and their perimeter players were so good. There's nothing we can do about it when [Chucky] Jeffery hit that shot at the end of the shot clock. There's nothing we can do about stuff like that. Those are the things that happen to us that are fine. It's the throwing the ball out of bounds, the not matching up. We can't be mentally out of ball games, and we were mentally out of this for a while. I don't understand how you are in and out in a game, but we were. I thought the Colorado bunch played really well."
On what he liked about his team battling back in both halves
"We dug holes, 14 or 15 point holes in the first half, and cut it back to six. In the second half we did the exact same thing. We started the half and dug a 14 or 15 point hole and I think we dug it back to within seven or eight at one point. You like the fact that the kids don't quit, and they keep coming. It's just that when you play someone like Colorado your margin of error is so small. You can't dig those two holes. I guess you can get away with it once but not twice. I thought they got a little complacent when they got up by 15 and then relaxed a little bit, and I think that's what she'll [head coach Linda Lappe] want them to do - not let someone hang around like we kind of did."
On the 10-game road trip
"We kind of did some of it by design. We had to finish up some games before I got there in order to get the schedule fixed. We already had some of these set up, but I really think that it's good if you're a young team and you want to test what you've got. Go on the road, play Colorado, play Missouri, play Kentucky, play Louisville, play Vanderbilt and do everything on the road. You are going to find out what you've got and what you're kids are made of, and that's what we are trying to do. So far they are not backing down from the challenge, they are just not stepping up to it like I hope they will."
On guards Jaclissa Haislip and Heather Butler
"I thought those two battled. They probably played too many minutes to be honest. They are two very talented freshmen, and we expect a lot out of them. They are not quite talented enough to carry the whole team yet. Where as I think [Brittany] Spears and [Chucky] Jeffery are able to do that. If they grow up and get better, then maybe they can play like them in the near future."
